Ideas for Home Bar Shelves

When you are designing a home bar, include shelving units that increase the functionality and style of the space. Look for options that match the design of your bar and consider ways to maximize storage options even in a small area. As you design the bar in your home, choose shelving that suits your home's atmosphere for everyday life as well as entertaining purposes.

Tiered Shelves

To re-create the look of commercial bar shelves at home, use a tiered display. If you are handy with construction tools, you can make your own by building a simple set of steps with two or three levels. Run the steps along the length of your bar's back to make the alcohol bottles easy to reach. You can also build tiered shelves around a corner for a dramatic look; this is particularly useful in small spaces. Install lights inside the unit and replace wooden shelves with frosted or semi-transparent glass to illuminate the bottles and their contents from below.

Mirrored Back

Increase the perceived space in your bar by installing a mirror behind the bar shelves. This is effective whether you have a small or large bottle collection; the mirror will reflect parts of the room and the shapes of the liquor bottles. You can also put glasses on shelves in front of the mirror to make the most of the reflective surfaces. Avoid scratching the mirror by installing it behind deep shelves so that bottles and glasses do not touch the mirror.

Hanging Glasses

When you have limited storage space in a home bar, install shelves that have a system for hanging glasses. Look for shelves featuring wire or metal racks that allow you to hang columns of glasses; most hanging options store glasses by their bases. This allows for both visibility and the easy access to glasses and lets them dry quickly after washing. By storing glasses in the open, you can create additional atmosphere in your bar area.

Wine Shelves

If you will be serving wine in your home bar, consider adding wine shelving. If you have the budget, you can hollow out part of a wall to build recessed square or circular shelving for individual wine bottles. For a less costly project, simply hang a wall-mounted wine rack on the wall next to the bar or set up a low-profile standing rack on the bar back. Allow enough space so that you can have four or five bottles of wine on hand for entertaining.